I dismount from my horse and make my way into the main building of the compound, headed to Vater Henry’s office. I need to report everything that’s just happened, as well as discuss security of the compound while the damages are being repaired.
When the backdoor of the building slams shut behind me, it kicks up a plume of dust from last night’s destruction and I choke. It takes several hacking coughs to clear my airway before I can continue on my path. The power is off in this section of the building still, but there’s enough light from the windows behind me to see by. The floor is littered with chunks of concrete, dirt, debris, and toppled furniture, and I nearly slip on a puddle of water from a busted pipe as I turn the corner, nearly running into Tara Calloway.
She mumbles an apology and I nod, stepping to the left to allow her to pass. Turning to look over my shoulder at her retreating form, I see she too has turned to look at me. When she winks, I’m surprised, but none the less intrigued.
Flirting with a man you aren’t married to is heavily frowned upon, but I don’t see eye to eye with the church on that respect. Sure, I agree woman should know their place, but being an unmarried man, I don’t mind a little promiscuity. A man has needs, and the fact that I’m still unmarried at twenty-one, those needs aren’t being met. Sure, I have a thing going with Ella Mason who lost her husband last year during a hunt, but she’s used goods. It would be a death sentence to take the virginity of an unmarried girl, so I have to resort to widowers. Ella isn’t old, on the contrary, she just turned thirty last month, but watching Tara walk away, those pigtails bouncing, yeah, I could get down with that.
“David, did you come to make your report?”
I’m jerked back from my mental fantasy by Vater Henry’s question. Turning, the man is standing in the doorway of his office looking a little worse for wear. It’s clear he hasn’t had time to shower. He’s still wearing the same suit he wore for last night’s placement ceremony. He’s done away with the coat, but the cream color button up dress shirt is covered in dust and blood, his chocolate dress pants have a long rip down the left leg, his hair is more than a little disheveled, and his face is still streaked with dirt and soot. He also has a bandage on his right cheek, no doubt obtained when the first explosion rocked the main building.
I nod in his direction, following him into his office and taking a seat in one of two chairs this side of his desk. The Vater makes his way around to the other side, taking a seat in his brown desk chair before propping each elbow on the desk and letting out a stressed sigh.
“Well, David, do you have the girl? Where is she?” He directs a hopeful gaze at me, and I wish I was able to tell him what he wants to hear.
Shaking my head before speaking, he sinks back waiting for me to explain. “I found her, along with Chase Hurst and Cody Booker. They had been hiding out in an abandoned house about five miles from here, but they weren’t alone.” Leaning forward, resting my arms on my knees, I think through what else to tell him.
The Vater sits up, eyes wide before asking, “What do you mean they weren’t alone? Who were they with?”
“Well, Vater, I tried to warn you, as did Elder Jacobs before his…untimely death. The girl is working with the Diablo gang. She was with four members, one of them I recognized as a higher up. My intel tells me Anna was the one that convinced Lord Mateo of the Diablo gang to attack last night.” Sitting back, I straighten my shoulders, doing my best to look down on him as he seems to process this information.
The Vater is nothing more than a figure head. Someone the people can look to for guidance and hope, but in reality he isn’t running the show. In fact, he’s pretty damn naïve if you ask me. He does his sermons, walks around with an air of authority, while a select few do the real dirty work. Elder Thompson and Elder McGee mostly, but a few others play their part, as well as the Vater’s wife, Mutter Vera. That woman is terrifying, and while the Vater is weak and probably wouldn’t hurt a fly, his wife is a whole other story. I have zero intentions of crossing the Mutter. It’s a good thing she and I are on the same side of things, and I plan to keep it that way.
“So if you found her, where is she David?”
This is the part I’m not looking forward to, but I know I have no choice. “When we approached, I tried to reason with her, but they attacked us. We may have been evenly numbered, but they didn’t fight fair. They all had guns, Vater. I lost a good man in the fight. Jimmy White was shot in the back trying to walk away. Bunch of cowards.” I will my face to turn red, hoping to validate my disgust, and from the look on the Vater’s face it seems to be working.
“I’m sorry to hear about Jimmy, but have no fear my son, they will be judged by God, and I have no doubt it will be harshly,” the Vater says, standing and making his way around to perch on the corner of his desk. “Were you able to bring his body back?”
I shake my head and clench my fists for good measure. I need to be convincing.
Disappointment crosses his features as he continues. “Very well. When you’re certain it’s safe, send a team to retrieve him. His wife and child need to be able to
